First And Last
by with eyes looking up
Summary: It took almost an entire year, but she eventually found him. SasuSaku, angst. InoSaku, friendship. Warning: character death.


**First & Last**

**SasuSaku, angst. InoSaku, friendship.**

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Haruno Sakura had always been dedicated to one Uchiha Sasuke. It began at the young age of seven, when she first managed to catch a glimpse of the boy walking hand in hand with what would be his enemy, his aniki. She had been sitting on a bench, eating ice cream with her mother, and watched the pair walk past, talking about '_another time, Sasuke_'. It was love at first sight, or so she believed. Over time, she told her best friend, Ino, and was met with disaster.

(_"You'll never be good enough for him, Forehead."_)

The years went by; she was placed on his genin team with Naruto and Kakashi-sensei. This of course made Ino see green, and made Sakura leap for joy- quite literally. Months passed, years, even, as they all steadily grew in both power and maturity. She began to realize that Sasuke would never notice her, but that persistent voice in the back of her head kept her optimistic.

And then he left without any sort of goodbye, other than _thank you_.

At first, she was hurt. Her days afterwards were a blur of tears and a stabbing pain in her chest as she begged Naruto to bring him back. When that didn't succeed, the feeling drained from hr entirely. Her eyes hollowed, she didn't eat or come out of her room, and she kept the door locked at all times. It was horrible: the empty feeling that carved against her heart made her see stars, and she noticed herself begin to loose weight. It wasn't until Ino had knocked down her door and flourished a mirror with a scowl that Sakura saw what she had become. She was skinny- far too skinny- and pale from the lack of sun. Purpled bruises decorated just above her cheekbones, results of her reoccurring insomnia. Her hair was stringy and greasy, and her hands shook constantly. But the things that drew her attention were her _eyes_. Eyes that people had once complimented her left and right for, eyes that had once shone like polished emerald were a sickly green, darkened and seemingly empty.

And honestly, it scared her.

She found herself sobbing, falling to her knees, the pain returning but stronger. Ino immediately dropped her hard look, falling down next to her and encasing her friend in her arms.

(_"You can't keep doing this to yourself, Sakura. Please."_)

It took that one visit from an old enemy, now friend to let Sakura see herself. Years passed afterwards and she grew, outshining more than half of her generation. She became the envy of every girl for her exotic figure and every medic for her nearly perfect chakra control. She grew into a beautiful and talented woman, and when she could, she visited Ino as much as possible. They were both glad their friendship was back to normal.

(_"I was wrong, Sakura," she once said, "He was stupid not to want you. You're beautiful."_)

With this statement returned her determination, and she decided. She would find Sasuke, and she would _prove_ it was true. So she set out on an official mission to find and retrieve Uchiha Sasuke.

It took almost an entire year, but she eventually found him.

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"_Sasuke_," Sakura breathed, gazing upon her former teammate's unmoving body in dread. He was covered almost entirely in spots of crimson blood, but who's she didn't know- or want to know. The body of Uchiha Itachi lied not far off, unmoving and not breathing. Ignoring him for the moment, Sakura forced herself to move and dropped next to Sasuke with tears welling in her eyes: her first in years. "_Wake up_."

Sasuke's hand twitched minutely, and Sakura saw her chance: taking a deep breath, she pressed her hands to his chest and poured her chakra into him, forcing herself to stay calm.

_Wake up, wake up, wake up, open your eyes, breathe, wake up, please, open your eyes. Call me annoying…say you hate me…say something!_

"S-Sakura?"

"Thank god." Sakura whispered, finishing and leaning over the waking Uchiha tiredly. "Are you alright? What hurts?"

Sasuke's eyes fluttered closed again, and he took a shuddering gasp. Blood bubbled up from in between his lips, leaking down his chin. Suddenly, Sakura knew. "…how did…you get…here…?"

(_"How did you find me?"_)

"I searched for you," she choked out, the tears overflowing, cascading down her cheeks to land on Sasuke's shirt, darkening it. "For so long, I searched for you. You stupid bastard, and now you're…you're…" Her fists clenched.

His dark eyes watched her wearily. "I'm dying."

Her throat bobbed. "…yes."

Silence fell besides his sharp gasps for breath and grunts as he tried to sit up. She made no move to stop him; he'd just ignore her anyway. There was no point. Her eyes fell downward, to the blood coating her hands. She wondered how much of it was his. A hand grasped her chin with surprising force, and she looked up, eyes widened. His dimming eyes bored into hers, looking into her soul, it seemed. Her breathing quicken as she realized that he was hardly a few inches away. "S-Sasuke-kun…"

"Sakura, I-…" he paused, as if deciding on something, wiped the blood from his lips, spit on the ground. His eyes were pained as they turned back to hers. "I'm so sorry. For everything." And before she could tell him yes, it was alright, she was going to bring him home, he closed the distance between them and pressed his lips to hers softly, almost hesitantly.

The color rose to her cheeks and her eyes slid closed. Wetness again flooded and ran down her cheeks like salty waterfalls. It was her first kiss- and her last. She knew it, he knew it, and he seemed to be making a conscious effort of giving it his all, despite the light that was slowly fading from his eyes. Eventually she felt his movements slow, and pulled back reluctantly. The tears were running free, now- she didn't bother wiping them away. The hand that was buried in her hair loosened its hold on pink locks, falling to the ground with a _thunk_ that seemed to echo in her soul. Carefully, she lay his body down, holding has hand to her heart.

"Sasuke, please, tell me." She whispered quietly, afraid to break the silence. What she was asking for, he didn't know, but apparently he did. His eyes remained trained on her, and a small smirk- her smirk- form on his lips.

And then, with his last breath, he murmured a soft, "You're annoying", even as she watched his eyes close for the last time.

And with a last shudder, Uchiha Sasuke – the love of her life – was dead.

Her body had never felt as cold as it was at the very moment, gazing down at what was the last Uchiha, who was undoubtedly passing from their world to the next.

She only wished him well as she stood, numb, to return home.

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**Ah, yes. Sweet, sweet angst. :)**

**Did you guys like the ending? I didn't…I think it's missing something. Whatever. **

**The inspiration for this fic comes from the very talented MuzzaThePerv on DA. **

**You can find the picture here, if you decided you want to see it: http:// muzzatheperv . deviantart . com /art /The-First-and-Last-Kiss- 82051104**

**Drop a review? I'd like it bunches. **


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